Shaunak Nair and Amelia Garibaldi claimed the men’s and women’s titles at the 2026 Nipomo Amateur at Monarch Dunes in Nipomo, California.
Nair, a sophomore at UC Davis, shot 68-67-71 to finish at 7-under 206, sealing a two-shot win despite a shakier final round after a near-perfect start to the week.
Nair was bogey-free for his first 37 holes before finally dropping a shot on his 38th hole — the second hole of the final round — and added two more bogeys later in the day.
He steadied with an even-par 71, which proved enough to stay clear of the field.
He began the final round with a four-shot lead at 9-under 135, ahead of Vineet Vallamsetty, a freshman at Chico State, who sat second at 5-under 139 after rounds of 72-67. Vallamsetty slipped with a closing 75 to finish T14 at 1-over 214.
The biggest late push came from Adam Anderson, who recovered from an opening 75 with rounds of 68-65 to finish runner-up at 5-under 208. Anderson started the final day T7 at 1-over 143, then posted a 6-under 65 — the lowest round of the tournament — to climb into second.
Zachary Tarter, the first-round leader after a 4-under 67, couldn’t stay in the mix, closing 72-80 to finish T29 at 6-over 219.
Garibaldi holds on in women’s division
In the women’s division, Amelia Garibaldi, a junior at Fresno State, shot 77-71-74 to finish at 9-over 222 and win by one.
Garibaldi entered the final round three shots back in a tie for third, chasing Kylie Phi (San Diego State) who held the 36-hole lead at 3-over after 74-71, while Nicola Kaminski, a San Jose State graduate and two-time champion, stood second at 5-over after 71-76.
Garibaldi’s closing 74 was enough as Phi slipped to a 78 and Kaminski closed with a 76, leaving both players tied for second at 10-over 223.
Kaminski, the defending champion and winner in 2024 and 2025, settled for runner-up this time as Garibaldi came through with the biggest move of the week on the final day.